


Crushing

by YellowGodValtiel



Category: Cyberpunk 2077 (Video Game)
Genre: Crush at First Sight, F/M, Fluff, Internal Monologue
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-20
Updated: 2020-10-20
Packaged: 2021-03-09 00:21:27
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,765
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27115318
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/YellowGodValtiel/pseuds/YellowGodValtiel
Summary: Tasked with obtaining the spiderbot from the Maelstrom gang, V finds herself quickly and  unexpectedly developing a crush on a certain gang member.
Relationships: Dum Dum/V
Kudos: 51





	Crushing

**Author's Note:**

> One-sided V x Dum Dum. This is basically just V's internal monologue during this 5~ minute scene. I originally uploaded this to Tumblr, but I revised and rewrote here and there. Enjoy!

V pushed the 'office' prompt on the elevator screen, and up the elevator went. While being in the midst of an unfamiliar and armed-to-the-eyeballs gang territory, V was hardly breaking a sweat. Years of climbing the corperate ladder had taught her a thing or two about keeping her head in check under pressure, and with the corpo agent's generous donation in her back pocket, how difficult could schmoozing a few Maelstrom gang members be?

Upon the elevator coming to a halt and the doors whooshing open, V was greeted with a "What?" from a Maelstrommer. How formal.

"Lookin' to buy a bot, model MTOD12. Looks like a spider."

"Couch. Plant it." The Maelstrommer commanded, gesturing to two tattered pieces of upholstery. V followed the cyborg in dreadlocks to the better lit area of the lair, passing a gang member with no lower jaw. 

"Yo Kurt, peek around the corner and see if we got anything like that." He called to a fellow gang member in the shadows. His sounded nothing like the voice on the intercom that had invited her up, but it didn't matter, buisiness was buisiness. Additionally, she noticed the slight mechanical reverbration in it. It sounded stange and inhuman, yet she found herself...liking it?

Passing another gang member lying on a cot, presumably connected to a netrunning cable, V slid onto the couch closest to her. Now that she was able to get a better look at the ganger, she couldn't help but stare. The thin Maelstrommer's coincidentally spider-like mechanical eye augmentations weren't his only notable facial feature, there were notches in his ears lined with metal, as was most of his face. Amongst the surface wiring, metal plates, and his multiple piercings, V's eyes were fixated on the two piercings on the right side of his upper lip in particular. She watched his lips move; He was saying something to Jackie, but V was far too distracted by him to register their exchange.

"Sit the fuck down 'fore I plant a bullet in your skull!" That much came in loud and clear.

The fog in her head completely dissipated, and when she came to, V saw that Jackie was practically towering over the Maelstrommer, who, in spite of Jackie's intimidating size, showed no sign of fear, and clearly had no intention of backing down. 

**Fuck**. She had lost her focus for five seconds, and already Jackie had turned a conversation into a confrontation. This wasn't the time nor the place, they were completely outnumbered by bodies and gunpower. 

Careful not to agitate him further, she gently touched Jackie's upper arm to get his attention.

"Jackie, sit down." She suggested softly yet firmly, hoping he wasn't angry enough to shrug her off.

He hesitated for a moment.

"This ain't gonna end well, but...shit." He said, shoving the ganger away when he took a seat on the couch adjacent to her. Crisis averted.

"Well alright, fuckin' bravo." The ganger said sardonically, holstering his gun and taking a seat on the table just across from V. He was so close to her now, only an arm's length away. 

"Come on, lighten up." He prodded, producing an inhaler from his pocket and extending it to V in a mechanical hand, donning a light smile.

"Have a whiff." 

V very nearly reflexively refused the questionable synthetic. Her past experience being a corpo agent meant regular drug testing, and failing a regular screening meant the loss of the position she'd worked herself to the bone to achieve and maintain. So much for that lifestyle, she supposed. Staying away from any kind of drug was a habit she held herself to religiously, but now that she had nothing to lose, what could be the harm?

Well, negative side effects and hallucinations, for starters, but refusing this offer from the ganger would potentially mean losing what little approval of her he might already have had, which was something she wanted more than she would admit to herself.

Hastily, she grabbed the canister from him and inhaled sharply. The dopamine rush was instant, and everything turned a bright pink hue. She tried not to cough from the way it burnt her throat, but the sweet strawberry flavor was a pleasant surprise. If this was what doing drugs was like, it was definitely something she see herself indulging in regularly.

"Hm, better?" He clapped, short for "hand it over". V handed the inhaler back to him, after which he took a short drag of the synthetic drug himself.

The same dopamine rush apparently hit him hard too. Shaking his head, he puffed smoke into the air. 

"Now we can talk."

Right, the mission. Typically organized and professional no matter the occasion, V was surprised at how easily that train of thought kept slipping away from her.

"The bot - I need to see it." 

"Suit yourself." He said, opening a large briefcase sat next to him to reveal the spiderbot.

"Fuckin' tricked out, state-of-the-art, this thing. Don't even got no standard port." 

He then popped a chip into a port behind his ear, proceeding to ramble about the various "bells and whistles" on the bot. V was already long gone though, listening to him passionately talk about and demonstrate features that he'd clearly been intrigued enough by to toy with himself was, well...something. Something V that cared not to name or define.

"So what'cha think?" He stared at her intensely when his optical LEDs flicked back on, which caused V's stomach to erupt in butterflies. 

"Jaina, pay up and let's get the fuck outta here." Jackie mumbled. 

It was simply a means to an end of a business transaction, which should have felt simple. Yet, a nameless, nagging feeling kept urging her to ask the Maelstrommer something else about the bot, or why Dexter mentioned that he and the gang didn't get along. Regardless, this was no social event, and making small talk with dangerous cyberpsychos wasn't exaclty part of the assignment.

"The bot - I'll take it."

No sooner had those words left V's mouth than a loud bang had come from the back of the den, which had caught the attention of the bot salesman as well. The noise was quickly followed by a huge, bearded Maelstrommer marching straight over from a room towards the back of the den, pulling a gun on Jackie, then directing the muzzle at V. The cyborg in front of her had since scurried out of his way, and joined the bear at his side with his gun also drawn.

"Two questions: What the fuck's goin' on? And who the fuck is this?"

V swallowed the lump that had only then formed in her throat and pulled the corpo chip from her pocket, hoping that the bribe would be enough to prevent the situation from getting any uglier.

"Got fifty large on this credchip." She said, holding the chip up.

"And you positively reek of militech." The large Maelstrommer said through clenched teeth. 

"Dexter Deshawn sent me." V retorted.

"Dexter Deshawn? Dreads, gold plate, fat old fuck? That him?" He mocked, causing the gangers standing behind him with their weapons drawn to erupt in laughter.

Following Jackie's lead, in one swift movement, the pair of mercenaries were on their feet with their gun barrels pointed at the Maelstrommers. V thought that she was prepared for a tough conversation or two, but a gun standoff?

She was doing her best to keep her composure, but she felt as though her heart was going to give out pumping a million miles per minute knowing that she was a trigger-pull away from certain death.

"We'll pay for the bot, and be on our way." Jackie growled. No person in their right mind would have questioned the threat behind those words.

"How much did you say you had? Fifty K?" The Maelstrommer asked. 

"The creds are yours by all means, but I snagged 'em from a militech agent. I'd be careful with it, wouldn't want a bug running loose in your system."

The Maelstrommer grabbed the chip from V's hand, and with a "Move it" directed at Jackie, he slinked back into the office. The tension in the air dissolved as soon as he'd left the room, and everyone lowered their guns. It didn't show, but V was reeling from the emotional rollercoaster that this mission had turned out to be.

"Woo! Not the smoothest of deals, but it worked out in the end, right? Flathead's good gear. It'll do the trick, whatever that trick is." Said the ganger she took the inahler from, handing Jackie the chip to the bot. 

V watched Jackie turn to leave without another word, bot case in hand. Before she followed him to the elevator, she walked over to the couch where the spider-eyed ganger was slouched, leaning on his leg while he chatted with his fellow gang members. It wasn't a life threatening situation by any means, but V's heart was pounding away as if it were. She had no idea what she was doing, or why she was doing it, but she couldn't stop herself - it felt so impulsive and instinctual.

"I never caught your name." She called out to him casually, catching him by surprise. When he turned to face her, she felt like she had practically caught fire.

"Dum Dum." 

She smiled at him.

"V. See ya 'round." 

"Later."

With that, V turned on her heel and began her walk to the elevator. Her legs felt like Jell-O.

________________________________________

"Shit, can't believe it, Jaina. We're in the major leagues now." Jackie said from the front seat of his car, about to take off towards the Afterlife with V at his side.

When she didn't respond, he glanced over to the passenger seat to see her with her chin rested in the palm of her hand, gazing out the window with her eyes half-lidded while staring at nothing in particular. 

"Ohohoho, I know that look." Jackie teased, snapping V out of her trance. V couldn't hide the surprise on her face when he spoke up, which turned into an irritated scowl in no time.

"Yeah, you caught me spacing. Must've been that drug I huffed earlier." V said nonchalantly, crossing her arms and deliberately facing away from Jackie to hide the deep red in her face. It was hilariously unsubtle, but Jackie wasn't hellbent on embarrassing her further.

"Whatever you say, Jaina. I think you've got it bad." Jackie said, smirking to himself as started the car and began the drive to the Afterlife to meet Dexter Deshawn. 


End file.
